Octogenarian Sues Apple over Glass Door Collision at Retail Store

Evelyn Paswall, an 83-year old resident of Queens, New York, is suing Apple seeking $75,000 for medical expenses plus punitive damages totalling $1m, after smashing her nose against a glass wall at the Apple Store in Manhassett on Long Island. The woman claims to have walked into the glass doors unaware of their presence. She is now claiming she did not realise she was walking into a wall of glass and she broke her nose as a result of the collision.

Her suit claims that "the defendant was negligent ... in allowing a clear, see-through glass wall and/or door to exist without proper warning," according to reports from CBS New York.

"Apple wants to be cool and modern and have the type of architecture that would appeal to the tech crowd, but on the other hand, they have to appreciate the danger that this high-tech modern architecture poses to some people," Paswall's attorney Derek T. Smith told CBS New York.

The Manhassett Apple Store mimics the glass design architecture of Scottsdale Quarter and Lincoln Park stores and has floor-to-ceiling glass walls at the front and rear of the store, with doors in the middle at both ends.

Last Year, Apple had installed white stickers marking the transparent glass walls at all Apple Stores to avoid the occurrence of such accidental collisions. However, the victim's lawyer opines that any markings on the glass are insufficient without an actual caution board, saying his "client is an octogenarian. She sees well, but she did not see any glass."

Following the accident, warning strips have been posted across the width of the Manhassett storefront, as of Saturday, to prevent any further incidents.